Rossendale Bell Target - Now every Thursday night!

[zooma]

After waiting for over a year to get official clearance I am pleased to let everyone know that following a church committee meeting last night, we now have permission ( should I say blessing?) to use the main hall every Thursday night for Bell Target Shooting at the RMTC.

We have been "testing" the bell target shooting for the last couple of Thursdays to see how we get the hall set-up for it and last week we "tested" it a bit more with the knock-out match we had here with some of the Rivvy lads joining in and basically it went very well.

We have a couple of small detail points that may be a little unique to us - firstly all rifles coming to the club must be secure inside a HARD CASE and not a soft canvas cover that may attract undue attention. This is part of the deal, and to be honest we have no problems complying with this rule if it helps us to secure the facility.

Secondly we need to make a really good job of cleaning up when we finish as the hall is also used for mother and baby and pre-school groups so we have to make sure no lead pellets (new or used) are left anywhere - so basically we need to make sure we sweep and vac the floor and stage area very carefully when we have finished shooting after each session. Being tidy is not a bad thing and we have no problems with this requirement either.

We will always have ball target shooting ( to the new East Lancs rules) at our club every Thursday night - and we hope it will be well attended to make the long wait worthwhile! The 10 meter pistol range will also remain open on Thursdays and Tuesdays and the range fee is £4 per night for RMTC members.

Anyone interested should contact me by PM.

[zooma]

Our first event since we have become "official" is this Thursday - the last day in January.

We are holding an Individual bell target match to find the January Individual Champion.

The scoring will be to the new East Lancashire Bell Target League rules, and every competitor will shoot two rouds of 5 shots with the total score being used to decide who the January Champion will be.

In the event of a tie, there will be no count-back - just a sudden death shoot-off to decide the winner.

[zooma]

Another bell target was in action last night as the second enclosure was completed when Andi fitted the steel backer plates to Johns G's handiwork. The first RedBob bell target to be fitted with a hood has now had a Perspex shield fitted to defuse the light provided by a low voltage light fitting that bathed the target in a nice even soft light that really improved it and has solved all our target lighting problems. The raw metal hood has been given a matching coat of red paint and now looks very smart.

The extra sound created by the new metal hood has been completely removed by the use of some self-adhesive sound absorbing foam strip fitted inside it, so all in all we are really pleased with the end result.

Now we have got the RedBob target 'sorted" we need to get another hood made for the second bell target so that works as well as the first one. John R sent me some pictures of his RB target - also fitted with one of his special hoods and lit with a low energy mains bulb and that looks good too.

We did not really need a competition to know the result last night as John Gould hit 10 consecutive clean bell shots with his Original Model 50 T1 (de-tuned). We are going to give him a compulsory dope test as we are very suspicious!

His Original Model 66 with the barrel sleeve weight and butt plate spacer removed was also working very well and looked good with the Sperex painted alloy tube fitted to make the barrel look a little fatter with very little weight increase.

My standard Model 66 was working very well and could be the first rifle to have a club transfer as Sam really took to it and was ringing the bell far too often for my liking and could be a potential star in the making. This full spec rifle with the butt spacer and barrel weight suited Sam's build perfectly and looks like a strong future combination to watch out for.

The Original Model 75 that John and myself rebuilt from scratch was performing superbly and is probably the only rifle on the range that we know everything about inside and out! The recoilless action on this rifle really is totally "dead" - one of the best examples of the breed and is also a very good bell ringer! This rifle had a visit to MAG after it had been completely stripped, cleaned and polished inside and so also has a perfect blue finish.

Since the barrel was also blued we did not refit the barrel sleeve weight as most Model 75 barrels do not look very good due to the adhesive used to bond the sleeve being exposed when it is removed. We also removed the butt spacer and shortened the butt a little prior to giving it a new oiled finish and fitting the custom alloy dovetail buttplate spacer.

This is a nice unusual Model 75 that balances very well with a little less bulk than a regular Model 75 and suites those that prefer a lighter weight rifle with a nice rearward balance point and so it handles much like Johns modified Model 66 but with the convenience of a side lever - again in keeping with the easy to handle light weight appeal for those that struggle with a heavy rifle.

It is looking like the bell target night will be very popular, and as we improve our range with more target enclosures we hope to gain a few more members to help us pay the rent!

[thimblehouse]

Brilliant news

[karandras]

We did not really need a competition to know the result last night as John Gould hit 10 consecutive clean bell shots with his Original Model 50 T1 (de-tuned). We are going to give him a compulsory dope test as we are very suspicious!

I think he got it to 13 in a row before the nerves and pressure kicked in!

We the RMTC members decided last night that John should be banned from ever using his model 50 in competition, well either that or he has to shoot it over his shoulder using a mirror . Unless it's against the rivi lot, then he's free to use it .

Was a very good nights shooting last night roll on next thursday!

Andi

[mrfixit]

hmm may have to put the smaller foresight in for next time,so I dont have to guess the centre.

[zooma]

hmm may have to put the smaller foresight in for next time,so I dont have to guess the centre.

Your always welcome to come over any time Steve.

We have got the target lighting well and truely sorted now and it is so much better than when we shot the knock-out match together.

We will hold the monthly Individual Champions Match every third Thursday in every month as I understand this is a good choice for the Rivvy gang now there is a enough notice to include it in your busy schedule.

.but you don't have to wait that long - come ever as often as you like!

[p.m.h]

It was interesting to see John in action with his Model 50.

Not many of us had seen a muzzle loading airgun before, though he did seem to lose his concentration once he had removed the bayonet.

We await, with baited breath, as to which rifle he will bring along next week.

Kind regards,



Phil

[zooma]

I am hoping we can have a second hood made this week (thanks to John R) so we can convert another RedBob target so it can be lit as well as our first one.

The hood and the defused lighting has made a huge difference to these targets and improved their use on the range no end.

Now they are clear and easy to see - before they were difficult to illuminate without shadows or patchy glare, now they are bathed in a nice regular soft light all over - the hood and the defuser design is working superbly well.

The hood acted like an amplifier at first so the pellet striking the target face was almost as loud as the bell (!), but with some simple self adhesive acoustic tape added inside the hood (not much) this has eradicated the problem completely.

Great Result!

[blueflax]

Zooma, do you have a photo of this modification somewhere?

Ron

[zooma]

Zooma, do you have a photo of this modification somewhere?

Ron

Hi Ron,

I will take some photo's when I am down the range next time and post them on bobsairguns.com with some measurements and a link here for everyone to see.

If I get a chance to go down and collect the modified target over the weekend so I can get the information posted a bit sooner.

The hood has to be welded on to the RedBob target after the original hinges and lid have been removed, but I am sending the details to Bob as it would be better to build an illuminated target with the hood included rather than to modify them as we have had to do. The illuminated target with the hood fitted does loose the charm of the original "carriage clock" looking original target, but when you are shooting at it I think this does not matter too much and it still looks acceptable.

I think this would not be too difficult to do and it would look a lot neater than welding this additional part on afterwards.

Last year I suggested to Bob that he make the bell spin on his target rather than have it fixed and he was pleased to do it and include the idea as his Mk8 target, so I think he will be pleased with this idea too and hope he will make some targets this way for those that want an illuminated version.

Naturally it will cost a little more than his Mk8 as it has more steel and time needed to make it, but if it was supplied without the light fitting it would give a free choice to the user and keep the cost down.

We have chosen a low voltage unit (cost £10 complete) that runs easily on four AA cells for many hours, but we are fitting a socket so it has the option of running from a 6 volt mains supply as these are cheap and available from lots of sources. John (nocity) has fitted an earthed mains socket to his hooded target and runs a low energy bulb like many of the other bell target designs such as the one sold by City - so there is enough space to fit a few different options of lighting in this design idea.

Hope this helps - Bob.

[red bob]

hi bob no worries,initial looks suggest that the change of design will require a straight forward mod with the hood formed, with welded ends and then tig welded onto the case;leaving the final light source to owners spec and choice.i will start proto on delivery of your specs.

[zooma]

hi bob no worries,initial looks suggest that the change of design will require a straight forward mod with the hood formed, with welded ends and then tig welded onto the case;leaving the final light source to owners spec and choice.i will start proto on delivery of your specs.

Thanks Bob - I hope you sell lots of the RMTC variant (with hood) of your excellent Mk8 bell target - it certainly works well for us.

ATB - Bob.

[zooma]

I took my Original Model 100 out of storage and shot it at the club last night for the very first time since I have had it.

It is always good to see any new rifle at the club on bell target night - especially something a little unusual - and there are not too many Model 100's about any more ( if ever). Once I had twigged the sequence of opening the bolt action breech, releasing the hidden slide catch and then completing the cocking stroke, everything went to plan most of the time - but not always!

Anyway, the Model 100 kept up with John G in the bell ringing stakes last night and I really enjoyed shooting it, but I must say the SSP action is a bit tiring when you are not used to it, and the Model 75, 300S and 380 side lever types are a lot easier to cock.

We had some nice Model 66 rifles in action last night - including John G's lightweight version and his dreaded Model 50 T01 which has now had yet another ring chopped off of the spring so it is now running at a more leisurly 7 ft lbs - and still ringing the bell.

In keeping with the muzzle loading image, this Model 50 has now gained some barrel feathers and I will donate a Racoon trapper hat to JG so his outfit is completed.

[I. J.]

In keeping with the muzzle loading image, this Model 50 has now gained some barrel feathers and I will donate a Racoon trapper hat to JG so his outfit is completed.

It will go well with his black mask and his horse Black Bess.

I did hear on the Rivi grapevine last night that some of the riff raff, including the Wilson brothers (Siamese twins joined at the wallet) intend to come over 'that there big hill' next Thurs night.
Dont worry, they will never find you even if one of them has been over before.

ATB
Ian